We are honored to continue our partnership with the Catalyst Leadership Conference. Our latest partnership was for their Atlanta event. We created a reflective space around their theme, “Be Present.”

Here’s a tour.

At the entrance, we asked people two questions.
1. What do you need to leave behind in order to be fully present in this space?
2. What things do you want to really bring into this space to receive clarity and direction on?

They dropped a stone in a trough of water as a physical representation of leaving things behind. And then we had a wall upon which they could write out the things they wanted to bring into the space.

The first experience on the right was “Be Present : Process.” As leaders, it’s tempting to want to put our hands on everything. But in this experience, participants took one of about 1000, 1 foot pieces of wood and added it to an ongoing sculpture. It called leaders to recognize they had no control over what happened before they got there and no control over what would happen after they left. In our leadership, we must be present in the moment and responsible with the opportunities we have been given.

Another experience focused on “Be Present : Senses.” The idea that as we’re present with God, we’re able to enter into our physical world with renewed eyes. We see the deeper reality behind the tangible. In this area were verses around Sweet, Salty, Bitter, Cold and Incense. The verses were accompanied by Sugar, Salt, Arugula, Ice and Incense. As people contemplated the verses, they were able to connect it to the physical experience of taste and smell.

Behind the tent was a prayer labyrinth. Here, individuals read scripture verses and prayed and contemplated those scriptures as they walked the labyrinth. It was an opportunity to slow down in the midst of a busy, fast paced environment.

The experience, “Be Present : Solitude” was a series of isolation booths that people could enter into for a time a quiet and contemplation. The walls were lined with paper upon which people could write and draw.

In the center of the room was “Be Present : Mystery.” A series of large cubes lit from the inside where the canvas for expression while participants reflected on the mystery of God. The sole instruction : Don’t use any recognizable letters, numbers, symbols or images of real things.